Fear the Reaper
by con14
Summary: After Fox gets into a terrible accident, he recovers in the hospital, but he soon finds himself in a living nightmare. Please read and review.
1. Chapter 1

During his early years in the Cornerian Academy, a young Fox McCloud has seen many things, but the most curious and disturbing, was a legend that many pilots were well aware of. A legend of a mysterious entity known as the 'Reaper' as its name suggest, they say that whenever a pilot was unfortunate enough to run into this enigma, they would not survive, but they lived long enough to say what it was.

In the present, ace pilot Fox was flying at rapid speeds in his Arwing over the planet of Corneria. On the planet, military scientists had developed a new fuel system that would allow ships to use fuel more efficiently and Fox had volunteered to test it out to see how good it is when it comes to high speed flying. He flew through the large black space as he performed various stunts such as barrel rolls all the while keeping track of his fuel supply and was surprised to see that it hadn't diminished as much as a regular fuel tank.

"Hey Fox, how you doing up there?" Falco asked over the intercom.

Back down on the surface, the Starfox Team was with General Pepper and several scientists who were monitoring his progress to see how the new system was working in the Arwing and so far they were happy.

"Pretty good, I have to admit that this thing can hold its gas." He said.

"Yeah this design is pretty impressive; I just wish I thought of it." Slippy said.

Fox smirked at Slippy's comment, but he had to focus of flying, sure he was in space, but the flow of ships coming in and out of the planet can cause real hell.

"Please you guys, Fox needs to focus." Krystal said.

Fox smiled because he heard her force, for the last few months when she joined the team he had tried to make a move, but found himself unable to and choking every time he tried to tell her. Plus he and the team had gone through utter hell with the Saurian Crisis and the Aparoid Invasion, he never found time, but he hasn't lost hope yet.

"Alright Fox, a few more minutes and then you should probably come back in." Peppy said.

"Roger that." Fox replied.

"And do be careful up there." Krystal said.

"Yeah Fox, you don't want to risk running into the 'Reaper' don't you." Falco joked.

"Not funny Falco." Fox said even though he was smiling.

"Yeah Falco, besides, we all know that's just a myth." Slippy said.

"Excuse me but, what is the Reaper exactly?" Krystal asked.

"Well allow me to explain; you see, there's an old legend out there that a mysterious and deadly specter known as the Reaper exists in the vacuum of space and whenever he can, he would prey on an unsuspecting pilot and take them down." Falco explained.

"That sounds a little scary." She responded.

"Don't worry, it's just a myth." Fox said over the com-link.

"Yeah, that legend has been around ever since James and I were in the academy, although James never believed in such a thing." Peppy said.

"Well I'm glad something like that doesn't exist." She said.

"Yeah, besides, that's not even the most terrifying part of the myth." Falco said.

"What do you mean?" She asked.

"Well the legend says that if someone was lucky enough to escape from the Reaper, than he would come after them and finish the job." Falco said.

Krystal was slightly unnerved by the story, but knew full well that the Reaper didn't exist, but even if something wasn't real, that didn't make it any less scary for some.

"Hey maybe you guys could talk about something else, because this isn't helping me fly." Fox said rather annoyed.

"Sorry Fox, you should probably come back down." Peppy said.

Fox confirmed the orders and began to make his approach to the planet, but he couldn't help but wonder about the Reaper. Ever since he was in the academy, he had heard stories about him and how he always left dead pilots in his wake. He tried to forget about it, but then his mind flashed to an incident he and his team encountered a few years ago.

The Starfox team intercepted a distress call from a ship floating aimlessly through space; they found the ship and managed to rescue the pilot who was still alive. He didn't look so good however, his hair was messy and wild and his eyes were dilated as if he saw something horrifying. He then awoke and started murmuring the same word over and over again, _'Reaper'_ and none of them knew what it meant, and the only explanation they could come up with is the fictional specter. What was even stranger was that a few days later he died in his hospital bed of unknown circumstances.

He shook off the feeling and continued to make his way back to Corneria, meanwhile the others were waiting for him to land, and all the while Krystal couldn't stop thinking about what the others said.

"Hey you guys." She called.

"Yeah." Slippy and Falco said in unison.

"Is there anything else to this whole Reaper story?" She asked.

"Well, according to legend, there are a few warning signs that occur whenever the Reaper is close." Slippy explained.

"What are they?" Krystal asked.

"Well, first you would hear strange and faint voices coming from the com-link." Falco started.

"Then your instruments will start to spark and malfunction and you would lose control." Slippy continued.

"Finally, the canopy would become dark and then the Reaper would appear in the cockpit and kill you." Falco finished.

"Wow, you guys have really interesting stories." She said unnerved.

Back in space Fox was prepping his engine for landing and reentry; it looked like it was going to be a good day. Then as he made his approach to the atmosphere, he heard something strange that made him stop for a second, he shrugged it off and continued to work, but then he heard it again, this time louder and he looked to see where it was coming from. He continued to look around for the noise and noticed that it sounded like voices speaking to him, but they were raspy and faint, but just loud enough to hear; he looked around and he finally found out that the sound was coming from the com-link.

"Hello, you guys talking down there?" He said tapping it.

He continued to speak into the com-link, but there was no response, just the weird noises. He decided that it was merely a malfunction and he just went back to working the controls of his Arwing.

"Okay, so far so good." He said to himself.

But as he got closer to the surface, something really weird happened. The lights and sensors on the instrument panel were flashing and beeping without any probable cause.

"What the hell?" He wondered.

Before he could react properly, the controls began to spark and Fox quickly covered his face with his arms to block the sparks. The entire instrument panel was smoking and Fox knew this was bad.

"What the hell is going on, I got to take control!" He proclaimed.

He grabbed the controls, but it didn't matter what he did, the controls would not respond.

"Oh god, this is not good." He said.

He tried his best to fix this, but it was futile, so he tried to contact his team for help by speaking into the com-link.

"Mayday mayday, this Fox and I have lost control to my ship do you copy?" He asked.

There was no response, he tried again and again but nothing was working.

"Can anyone hear me I repeat, I have lost control and falling to the surface of the planet!" He shouted.

He did everything he could take control of his Arwing, but the controls were unresponsive, and the outcome wasn't looking good.

"Could this get any worse?" He asked himself.

As if answering his question, the canopy was covered in a mysterious black sheet that spread across the entire screen.

"What is that?" He wondered.

He didn't know what he was looking at, it looked like a thick black tarp, he couldn't see through it, but he could feel the Arwing still flying out of control. But, then something happened that scared Fox nearly to death; out of nowhere a pair of bright, sinister, red eyes with no pupils, Fox was freaking out.

"What the hell, what the hell, what the hell!" He shouted.

He was really scared, but what happened next left him terrified beyond belief. The red eyes seemed to begin to move closer to him and the black substance expanded into the cockpit miraculously without breaking the glass, it looked like a dark mist with eyes. Fox was frantically trying to find a way to escape, but how could he? He was stock in a small cockpit with no way out, he was trapped.

As the strange entity got closer, Fox saw that it had somehow grew a sharp-clawed hand that was reaching for Fox. He knew it was the end, so he closed his eyes and readied for it, but then he thought of something, he didn't know what it was, but it gave him a reason to not give up. He quickly ducked down and grabbed the controls and tried his best to stir even though he had no control.

Back in the control center, the team and scientists were receiving a transmission from Fox's Arwing, but they were getting only static on their end.

"What's going on?" General Pepper ordered.

"We don't know sir, all we do know is that Fox seemed to have lost control of his ship and we can't seem to contact him." A scientist explained.

"So you're saying that Fox is up there with no control of his ship and we can't help him?" Falco asked.

"Basically, yes." He said.

"There has to something we can do?" Krystal asked.

"I'm sorry, but there's nothing we can do." He said.

Krystal could feel a twinge of sorrow, but before she could react, they heard Slippy shouting.

"Hey look up there." He said pointing out the window.

They all looked and saw the faint image of Fox's Arwing descending at a high speed towards them. Back in the Cockpit, Fox was still fighting for control of his Arwing as the mysterious creature tried to stop him. Just when it seemed that there was no use, he managed to make the ship turn slightly to his command, he knew he was getting back control.

The team and everyone else ran outside to witness the ship falling at an increasingly fast rate, but they were curious to see that it seemed to be maneuvering.

"It doesn't look like it's just falling." Peppy said.

"Maybe Fox got some control back." Falco said.

"Well it could be, but it looks like it might be a crash landing." General Pepper said.

Fox had managed gain majority of control of his ship back and he even though he couldn't see out of his canopy, he could just feel that he was close to make a landing. As he raised his ship to land, he looked at the specter with rage.

"In case you didn't know, this is my ship!" He proclaimed.

His ship crash landed on the strip as everyone ducked out and took cover. The Arwing skidded for a few meters and then stopped on the runway. Everyone instantly ran towards the wreck to see if he was okay, Krystal got there first and saw Fox sitting in the cockpit; he was covered in cuts and bruises and was bleeding profusely, she turned to call for help and the medic came within a few seconds the she took out her supplies and check Fox to see if he'll make it.

"Is he okay?" She asked.

"I got a pulse, and he's breathing, he's alive alright, but we got to get him to a hospital and fast!" She said.

Then some more medics came up with a stretcher and they carefully lifted him out of the ship and placed him on the stretcher and they hurried off the hospital. As everyone ran, Falco slowed down a little and looked at the wrecked ship and then back at Fox and only one thought went through his mind.

"What the hell happened up there?" He wondered and he raced to join the others.


	2. Chapter 2

The Cornerian Medical Hospital is one of the most efficient and technologically advanced medical institutes in the Lylat System; it is located within the downtown area of Corneria City. Inside, the Starfox Team were waiting anxiously in the waiting room, doing their best to stay calm and hope that Fox would be okay. Falco sat impatiently while trying to read a magazine, Slippy was twiddling his thumbs sweating, Krystal was sitting nervously trying to remain stationary, and Peppy seemed to be the calmest of them all, merely sitting in his seat arm crossed.

Krystal seemed to be the most nervous as she tried her best not to rush in and see how Fox was, she remembered how they all came in and Fox was instantly wheeled into the emergency room and they were told to wait for any new results. She didn't really know why she was worrying so much, she knew it was okay to be worried about Fox because of his condition, but for some reason she was worrying more than the others.

"_Why am I so concerned? I mean I'm worried because we're friends, but I have this strange feeling that I can't put my finger on." _She thought to herself.

She decided to ignore the feeling, but still she was worried about Fox. So using her telepathic abilities, she decided to read Fox's or the doctors mind to see what's going on. She closed her eyes and tried to find Fox, but unfortunately, she found it difficult because of all the other people there and all their thoughts were blocking her, and after a few minutes of trying, she gave up. She knew it took a lot of concentration to be able to read one's mind while in large crowds.

Falco was getting more restless, he didn't really like doing nothing when one of his friends is in trouble, especially Fox. The only thing that relaxed him was the fact that Fox would often get into situations like this, sometimes it would be worse than others, hopefully this would turn out like the rest and Fox will come out fine. Then again, he kept thinking about what happened, when Fox took off, the Arwing was working fine, Slippy inspected every part of it and said it was ready to go; everything was in order, but then the com-link went dead for no reason and Fox just lost control of his ship, it was weird.

Just as everyone was on the edge of their seats, the doctor came into the waiting room. He was a German Sheppard in his late 30's with a dark brown coat, he wore light blue scrubs with a white lab coat and a stethoscope hanging around his neck and there was a name tag on his coat that read 'Derek Isaacs MD'. Everyone got up at once and began to ask him a series of questions regarding Fox.

"How is he doctor?" Peppy asked.

"Well, we managed to get him into bed, but we didn't know what to expect, he was in a horrible accident and he looked terrible." He said.

Everyone's heart sank when they heard that, they were pretty sure he would say Fox wasn't going to make it.

"But, we found out that it wasn't as bad as we thought." He said.

Their faces lit up the second he said that, although they should have known that he'd make it, he was the kind of guy who could survive anything.

"Oh thank God." Falco said.

"Yes, he had some deep cuts and a few bruises, but luckily nothing was broken and no signs of trauma so far, although we would like to keep him here for observations." He explained.

"But could we see him?" Krystal asked.

"Sorry but in order for his wounds to heal, we gave him some morphine, so he's sleeping right now. But come back anytime after noon tomorrow and you can see him." He said.

"If you say so doc." Slippy said.

They all began to leave, although Krystal stopped for a few seconds and tried to read Fox's mind again, but still there was too much interference from the others in the hospital. So she decided to stop and leave, she and the others knew that they would be able to see Fox tomorrow, and she walked out of the front doors towards her Arwing.

Meanwhile, Fox was in his room sleeping; the room looked similar to any other hospital room, it had white walls, a door on one side and his bed on the other, windows that had the blinds down behind his bed, a small counter to the left and a closet to the right, there was a display board where there were pictures of his X-rays. His bed was medium size with white sheets and light blue sheets that covered his body from the waist down, he was wearing a white hospital gown, and he was covered in gauze on parts of his arms and some parts of his face. Next to the bed was a bag suspended of a hook that was filled with a clear liquid that ran through a small tube which was connected to a syringe that was in Fox's hand and also a heart rate monitor that kept an eye on his vital signs.

Although Fox was asleep, his mind was wondering freely as he dreamed. Within his dream he was in a dark room and there was no one around.

"Hello?" He said.

His question merely echoed within the room. At first he didn't know what to make of the situation, but then he heard movement and looked around. He started to panic because he didn't know what was going on and he didn't have a weapon. But then in front of him, he was shocked to see a pair of giant red eyes staring at him.

"Holy crap!" He said.

It was just like inside the canopy, this mysterious and frightening entity was staring right at Fox and he didn't have any way to defend himself. Then the darkness around him began to stir and soon, multiple hands formed out of the shadows and began reaching for Fox. He started to panic, and as the hands got a hold of him, he could feel them pulling him in multiple directions, and as he screamed as they were about to tear him apart, he suddenly awoke to find himself in a hospital bed.

"What the hell?" He asked himself.

He looked around the room and then at himself, he was shocked to see that he was covered in bruises and cuts, but then the memories of the crash came back to him.

"Oh right, the crash." He said.

He laid his head down on the pillow and tried to relax, and tried his best to forget about the whole thing, but the one thing that won't leave his mind were those giant red eyes and the shadow.


End file.
